About

Baltimore Japan Art Festival (BJAF) is an annual event in the Station North Arts District of Baltimore, MD that showcases Japanese culture through art, film, music and food. The festival aims to provide a platform for Japanese artists and cultural-experts to expand American audiences' perceptions of Japan.

Featured Guest Artist Yusuke Nakamura (illustrator)

For 2018, BJAF is working with the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) to welcome illustrator Yusuke Nakamura (Osaka, Japan) as our featured guest speaker. His centerpiece lecture and Q&A will coincide with the opening of Blue | Now | New: Yusuke Nakamura, an exhibition celebrating the 15th anniversary of his career.

In conjunction with the Japan Information & Culture Center, Embassy of Japan (JICC), BJAF is once again welcoming the New York Japan CineFest (NYJCF), a short film festival featuring works by Japanese and Japanese-American filmmakers. The 2018 NYJCF film lineup will be divided between the JICC and BJAF, with both featuring a Q&A with guest directors.

Aki Matsuri outdoor event

New this year is the Aki Matsuri, an all-ages outdoor event to be held in the The Ynot Lot (corner of North Ave & Charles St), featuring food & craft workshops, traditional Japanese festival games/activities, musical performances, and more.

Our Partners

The Baltimore Japan Art Festival is a production of Nippon Motion, a Baltimore-based Japanese culture and arts promotion company, in partnership with:

Limited Reward: "BEST Yusuke Nakamura" art book

Backers donating at least $60 have the chance to obtain a copy of "BEST Yusuke Nakamura", a collection of illustrations to celebrate the 15th anniversary of his debut. The book boasts over 250 works including 35 new illustrations completed since the release of his previous art book "NOW". Be one of the first people to own this fantastic, portable compendium of illustrations and impress your friends with your excellent taste!

Limited Reward: "NOW" art book

Backers donating at least $75 have the chance to obtain a copy of Mr. Nakamura's 2nd art book, "NOW", which features 235 works created from 2009-2014. This is a gorgeous, large-format book that belongs in any art-lover's collection and we are offering a limited number of them as a small token of our appreciation for your support.

Additional reward tiers TBA

Explanation of Funding Goal

We feel that it's important to be as transparent as possible with you, the potential backer, because we are asking for such a large sum of money. These graphs are accurate representations of our current budgetary situation and a way of showing you exactly what your funding is going towards. The amount of the Kickstarter goal is basically what Nippon Motion has already paid/will pay in order to ensure the successful execution of the event. Please see more details about this in the "Risks & Challenges" section below.

Thank you so very much for taking the time to consider backing BJAF, we really hope to see you there!

Risks and challenges

From the very beginning Nippon Motion has hoped that the BJAF and all related events could be made available to the public free-of-charge, in order to drastically lower barriers to participation and truly reach the widest audience possible. In order to achieve this goal, we at Nippon Motion have agreed to operate the event, which numbers countless hours of design, planning, logistical, organizational and support work, without any profit.

Through the generous support of our partners we have been able to cover many of the costs of running the festival without resorting to tacky advertising or sponsorship. Every single one of our partners is exactly that, a contributor who cares just as much about promoting Japanese culture and arts in Baltimore as we do. The great news for you, the prospective attendee and backer, is that the festival is completely bought and paid for and will go off whether we receive a cent from this Kickstarter or not.

However, in order to be able to make that guarantee some portions of the budget were covered out of pocket by Nippon Motion. In order to break even on cost, and to have any possibility of planning another BJAF for 2019, we are asking you to show your appreciation for the artists, creators, volunteers, backers, partners by contributing to the event. Whether you can attend or not, your support may make the difference.

And by the way, our total funding goal is a pretty exact number, it is simply what we need to recoup our costs (which include: airfare, travel, and interpretation for our featured guest, translation costs, and some miscellaneous logistical and clerical needs). Any funding that exceeds the goal amount will be greatly appreciated and will be squirreled away for the budget of BJAF 2019.

Support

Make a pledge without a reward

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $1 or more
About $1.00

Support BJAF 2018

Get that warm fuzzy feeling of supporting Japanese culture and arts in Baltimore. Also, get your name on the thank you placard at the MICA Brown Center on the main programming day, Saturday September 29th.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $15 or more
About $15

Early access to programming RSVP

All BJAF events (excluding the "Night is Short, Walk on Girl" screening at The Charles Theatre) will be open to the public, free of charge. However, some programming events (such as Yusuke Nakamura's keynote lecture, and the New York Japan Cinefest screening) will take place in a venue with limited seating and require an RSVP to attend. RSVPs will be taken for these events online, and will be first-come-first-serve. If you donate at this tier you will receive the link to RSVP for these events earlier than we will release it to the general public.

In addition, you will also be listed on the thank you placard displayed on the main programming day, Saturday September 29th at MICA's Brown Center.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $60 or more
About $60

"BEST" art book + autograph

Backers at this tier will receive a copy of Yusuke Nakamura's most recent book "BEST Yusuke Nakamura" (collection of illustrations to celebrate the 15th anniversary of his debut) and the opportunity to have it autographed by the artist. Books will be distributed at the MICA Brown Center on Saturday, September 29th and backers must present a valid photo ID (driver's license, government-issued ID card, passport, etc) to obtain their copy and autograph session.*

Backers will also receive early RSVP access (as per the $15 tier), and their name featured on the thank you placard displayed on the main programming day, Saturday September 29th at MICA's Brown Center.

* In the event a backer can not make it to MICA on 9/29/2018 to collect their book in person, BJAF can arrange shipping within the United States at the backer's expense. Subsequently, the book may not include an autograph by Mr. Nakamura.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $75 or more
About $75

"NOW" art book + autograph

Backers at this tier will receive a copy of Yusuke Nakamura's 2nd art book "NOW" (featuring works from 2009-2014) and the opportunity to have it autographed by the artist. Books will be distributed at the MICA Brown Center on Saturday, September 29th and backers must present a valid photo ID (driver's license, government-issued ID card, passport, etc) to obtain their copy and autograph session.*

Backers will also receive early RSVP access (as per the $15 tier), and their name featured on the thank you placard displayed on the main programming day, Saturday September 29th at MICA's Brown Center.

* In the event a backer can not make it to MICA on 9/29/2018 to collect their book in person, BJAF can arrange shipping within the United States at the backer's expense. Subsequently, the book may not include an autograph by Mr. Nakamura.